Kandra pulled his black coat tighter, as he marched in line with the others. He envied the Asha'man and their fancy coats, while he was stuck wearing his uniform. The column of Black Tower initiates marched solemnly, nobody speaking a word. It was deathly silent, except for the soft patter of their feet. Heading towards the Green, with the M'Hael at the head of the column, it seemed oddly fitting.

Kandra was oddly nervous. Never having met any Aes Sedai, he was a little afraid, but it would probably dissipate as the festival wore on. They finally made it to the Green. Artificial leafy strings hung from bower to bower. Kandra grimaced, they could have at least found real flowers for the festival, these….things….created an air of…..fakeness. There was no other word for it. They just seemed…..wrong.

Suddenly, silver lines materialized out of nowhere. They grew in diameter, until they were several spans wide. People spilled through, Aes Sedai with ageless faces, Accepted with determined faces, Novices with awe painted across their features. Then came the Gaidin and Gaidin-in-training, men with hard faces, scanning the Green for signs of danger. Kandra smirked. The Black Tower had gained a reputation, one that was not so good, and such behavior could be expected.

The White Tower initiates stood together, looking every so often at the black coats that watched them back. It would take a while before the mingling began. Kandra looked over at the podium, and saw the M'Hael standing behind it. His voice came loudly, a trick of the Power.

“Good afternoon. I will keep all pleasantries to a minimum and say instead that today is Bel Arvina, and today is the day for inhibitions lost and merriment found. The festival has begun.”

There was clapping after this statement, and music began to play. Kandra stood there, unsure of what to do. He heard muttering behind him, and turned around to see what it was. It was the skinny man from the Knives lesson, the one who Kandra had thrown off the poles. The man looked up at him and scowled. "Festival! Pfff! It's a time for people who should be honing their skills to cast off their selves and don their false merriment. They dance and sing, when they should be remembering what they are here for. To fight the Dark One."

Kandra studied the man. "Don't be so bitter. Enjoy yourself." The man spat near Kandra's feet, and pushed past him. The force of it caught Kandra off guard, and he stumbled backwards. He collided with something, and almost toppled over, stopping himself just in time. He spun around to see who he had hit.

The woman wore Novice white, and the anger on her face was plain. Kandra stood there, abashed.

"Why don’t you warn someone before you decide to crash into them next time?” the woman demanded crossly. Kandra almost asked her why she had asked such a stupid question, but caught himself. He knew women enough that to do that would be suicide. He tried a more calm approach.

"I'm terribly sorry milady. Please, accept my humble apologies."

OOC: You can take this wherever you want, Kandra is just trying to solve this in a peaceful manner.

Stella tugged on the sleeves of her freshly laundered white dress, unconsciously trying to make them a little longer. When she had been fitted for her Novice dresses, the Accepted helping her had... more

Stella straightened and eyed the stranger who had bumped into her, slightly aggravated that her angry had been wasted on someone who took it so calmly. His black coat marked him as an initiate of the ... more